Need to Replace Transport
Get a good used or demo transport like an Oppo and add a Sychro-Mesh reclocker and BNC cable to it. You can get 8psec of jitter this way, or you can spend $10K+ and probably not get close to this. Jitter from a typical transport: https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=154408.0 Latest jitter from a Synchro-Mesh: https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=157348.0 SM + BNC cable ~ $1K Steve N. Empirical Audio |
From the listings: https://www.audiogon.com/listings/lis8ieb1-mark-levinson-no-36-levinson-no-37-transport-title-should... $1650 you maybe could bargain down a bit a good transport built like a brick s***house. Also https://www.audiogon.com/listings/lis8ih68-bel-canto-eone-cd3t-cd-transport-cd-3t-13038-transports A solid little transport from Bel Canto for well under your budget. You will find straight transports harder to find as the market moves away from physical discs. |
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A memory buffer in the DAC can help with jitter depending on the design. One that is properly implemented is in the new Benchmark DAC. The downside is that you must live with the sound of the Master Clock in the DAC, which may not be to your taste. Also, if you give the DAC a really low jitter signal, the result will still have the intrinsic jitter of the clock inside, which may be more than the incoming jitter. Many inexpensive DACs now come with reclockers inside. The problem again is that these are usually not the highest quality clocks or the best implementations so the result can be hit and miss. Even with these designs, the input jitter still matters. You can tell just by changing the coax cable or the source. If it sounds different, then the DAC is not immune to incoming jitter. 99% of DACs will benefit from a good reclocker like the Synchro-Mesh. Those that do NOT have reclockers already inside will benefit the most. Steve N. Empirical Audio |
I decided on a Cambridge Audio CXUHD. With only a few discs run through it, I am very happy. The Beach Boys "Pet Sounds" never sounded better (very closely rivals vinyl) and SRV "Blues at Sunrise" is clear and detailed. Plucked strings are very natural sounding and the decay is as well. Drums are "in the room", with a sound stage wider than the speakers. Happy, happy! |
how about the Bel Canto CDT3? it is a dedicated transport msrp = $1500, used = $1000. I have had this transport and it is quite good. it reveals the typical Bel Canto hi rez SQ, but with balance and organicity. I only sold the BC transport b/c I also have an Special Edition CDP from Simaudio, which is comparable to the Bel Canto transport quality, (but the Sim also plays CDs, so the Bel Canto was sold ... @audioengr is on to something about the jitter, and despite his maelstrom of responses, I would have to agree with him. I also used to have the Oppo 95, but the transport on it sucked. both the Bel Canto and SimAudio above blew it away. but with the reclocker after the Oppo, the signal would get cleaned up. |
